Politics

In the face of the Obama/Congressional Democrats’ stimulus package, Congressional Republicans had little choice.  A vote for the package would inevitably be defined as a victory for the President and his bipartisan conciliation, not as a demonstration of Republican willingness to come to the table.  Beyond that, it would alienate the partisans still standing behind [...]

Film Reviews

It has been about two years since the release of Juno, but my disgust with the film has yet to subside.  Why bring this up now, you might ask?  Because the tendrils of Juno continue to wind themselves through American pop culture and film making, although, thankfully, not to the degree I had initially feared [...]

Criticism and Book Reviews

Kenneth Waltz’ book, Theory of International Politics , published in 1978, is a disappointing effort.  I have never been a proponent, per se, of neorealist perspectives vis-à-vis International Relations, but Waltz, despite his near-messianic stature in the neorealist camp, spends a great many pages saying virtually nothing.  The crux of Waltz’ argument is that in [...]

Music and Culture

The mixtape is a time-honored tradition and, perhaps, the least effective way of letting a special someone know how you feel about them.  The mixtape can utilized in many ways, be it for romance, letting a friend know what you think about them, or sharing some tracks you enjoy.  Whatever the intent, making a mixtape [...]

Food and Drink

Fiction

The following are two poems written in mid-late 2008 in a style somewhat emulative of the poetry of Raymond Carver and Richard Brautigan, both of whom I was reading heavily at the time.  Brevity was the order of the day, and my emphasis was placed most heavily on establishing a meter that was reflective [...]